Grady Alderman, one of the “50 Greatest Vikings,” passed away Thursday, the Vikings announced. He was 79.

Alderman, an offensive lineman, played for the Vikings from 1961-74. He was a backup for the Detroit Lions his rookie season (1960) before being selected by the Vikings in the expansion draft. Alderman was a six-time Pro Bowl pick and a two-time All-Pro selection during his Vikings career.

You can quibble with a couple of those choices. Maybe you prefer Luck over Wilson, even though Wilson has won a Super Bowl and has been far more productive in Seattle. Perhaps you think Jimmy Garoppolo has already proved to be better than Derek Carr. And there are some cases in which there really were no winners: The Bills would probably prefer to have Geno Smith over EJ Manuel, but you suspect they would rather have stayed out of the quarterback market altogether in 2013. You get the idea, though: The first guy often isn’t the best guy.

It’s fair to note that this doesn’t tell the whole story. Teams that pick first are often some of the worst organizations in football, and they’re among the worst because they’re bad at talent evaluation and subsequent development. It can become a self-fulfilling prophecy — in other words, the Browns stay the Browns.

“Honestly, I don’t really care what people say on Twitter or what they say if they are cheering for me or not cheering for me,” Reed said. “I’m out here to do my job, and that’s to play golf. I feel like if I’m doing it the right way, then that’s all that really matters.”

It was a good answer. ESPN writer Kevin Van Valkenburg made a great observation in 2016: “There is a little bit of New Jersey attitude in Reed.” He isn’t going to be deferential about anything in a sport that rewards the athletes for doing things “the right way.”

This isn’t the UFC, where throwing a handtruck through a bus window will only improve a competitor’s profile. Still: With so many robotic PGA Tour players out there, you’d think more fans would find Reed’s cockiness is refreshing. There’s only one guy like him.

“If there was not a mic around, and you went out and asked every single guy, and if they knew you weren’t media, and you asked them where do you want to be, they’d say No. 1 in the world,” Reed said. “And if they don’t, then those guys aren’t winning every week or even having the chance to win golf tournaments because they’re not believing in themselves.”

Reggie McKenzie has long said he is targeting this offseason for a Khalil Mack extension, and that deal is expected to ensure the top Raiders talent is the NFL’s highest-paid defender. But this process has evidently encountered some turbulence.

Mack did not show for the first day of Jon Gruden‘s offseason program Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). This is out of the ordinary for Mack, who is going into his final year of his rookie contract (via the fifth-year option). And this might be contract-related.

The Raiders and Mack were discussing an extension, Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal tweets, adding the team was hoping to get this done quickly. But Gehlken reports the sides are not close on a deal.

“I’m not worried about it. I really believe that Odell is a professional and he wants to be great,” Shurmur said. “He understands the importance of the offseason and he’s a competitive guy and, again, we had already started communicating before all that information kind of got out there and was talked about a great deal. He’s a professional and I’m glad he’s here.”

The safety market has been very slow to develop and even those who have signed contract such as Morgan Burnett got less money than many were projecting. Reid is among a group of notable free agent safeties that also includes Tre Boston, Kenny Vaccaro, T.J. Ward and Tyvon Branch.

The $62 million signing of Solder to play left tackle triggered a transition to right tackle for Flowers, who has not played that spot since early in his college career at Miami.

The Giants could still look for an upgrade at right tackle, perhaps in Day 2 of the draft with prospects such as Oregon’s Tyrell Crosby or Pittsburgh’s Brian O’Neill.

Flowers has his third offensive line coach in four seasons, his third head coach and he is being asked to change positions in what promises to be the most important year of his professional life.

The New York Giants have the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NFL draft and seem to have narrowed down their options.

“Their top three choices are [Sam] Darnold, Saquon Barkley and Bradley Chubb,” an NFL executive told Matt Lombardo of NJ Advance Media. “They are debating Barkley vs. Chubb, because they need an edge-rusher, but the scouts love Barkley.”

That would signal a rebuild is on the way, whereas if the Giants drafted an impact player like Barkley or Chubb, it could help the team contend for the playoffs in 2018.

Though it’s always difficult to trust rumors that come out as the draft approaches, these options match up with reported visits by prospects to New York.

Art Stapleton of the Record reported Thursday that Chubb was visiting the Giants and that Barkley, Rosen, Darnold, Allen and Baker Mayfield would visit them.

Everything was copacetic as Apple and the Giants reported for the first day of the team’s offseason workout program on Monday. Apple spent most of his offseason in California with several of his Giants teammates, and some relationships were mended.

“We talked. Definitely we talked. We’ve definitely buried the hatchet a while ago,” Collins said on a conference call with reporters. “That’s my guy, my brother. I’m always going to have his back. We knew what kind of caliber player he is. He knows what kind of caliber player I am. We’re just trying to get to work and make this season go.”

The Giants are trying to rebound from a disastrous 3-13 season where everything seemingly went wrong. Three cornerbacks were suspended at different points of the season for their conduct.

Apple had trouble with teammates and coaches during the troubling year, on and off the field. But the former first-round pick remains on the roster after ending last year by being suspended and told to stay away from the team.

After missing the entire 2017 season with a mysterious, lingering injury to his throwing arm, Andrew Luck is appealing to the Indianapolis faithful for patience as the Colts assemble for Phase 1 of their offseason program.

Toiling through an extraordinarily deliberate rehabilitation program, Luck began throwing again in February. To this point in the process, however, he has yet to reach the next level of throwing “The Duke” — the NFL’s official football.

“When the time is right,” Luck explained, “I’ll pick it up.”

Although the face of the Colts franchise is tempted to accelerate his rehab efforts, he emphasized the importance of diligently following his prescribed timetable.

With that Week 1 target date in mind, Colts fans shouldn’t expect to read rave reviews of Luck’s progress in mastering Reich’s offensive scheme during practices over the next two months.

The goal is to be ready for training camp “without a governor on,” Luck added, meaning full participation with no limitations. Once he reaches that pivotal stage, the three-time Pro Bowler expects to embark on a successful season that will have him in the running for NFL Comeback Player of the Year honors.

“I am very, very confident and very, very optimistic,” Luck explained. “I’m going to be absolutely fine and come back better than I was. I think I’ll be a better quarterback, a better teammate, a better person and I’m very confident.”

Case Keenum hosts the team that believes it upgraded at his position. Toss in the fact that Keenum and Kirk Cousins debut with their new teams on the same field and you’ve got yourself an enticing storyline. Taylor could also be battling the No. 1 overall pick for the starting gig. Preseason is little more than a walkthrough for starting quarterbacks, but if you don’t think at there is at least a little bit of residual bitterness in the bones of Taylor and Keenum after they were cast aside following playoff berths, you’re underestimating the competitive edge NFL players harness daily.

Well, duh, no amount of revenge in the preseason would make up for a Super Bowl loss. That doesn’t mean watching the reigning conference champions duke it out is worthless. Both Bill Belichick and Howie Roseman have retooled their squads this offseason to make another run at the Lombardi Trophy. How will those new pieces mesh? We could also get the nascent return of Carson Wentz to the playing field after his ACL tear last season.

Robert Pera, the controlling owner of the Memphis Grizzlies, announced Monday that he will retain his majority interest in the team in connection with the “buy-sell” process.

Pera, 40, made the announcement in an open letter that was emailed to Grizzlies season-ticket holders. He will continue to operate the team with controlling interest after making a “buy-sell” agreement with minority partners.

In his letter, Pera said he is “committed to Memphis as an NBA market and as the home of the Grizzlies.”

Story homered for the second straight game, sending a fastball into the left field seats in the fourth, one inning after Nolan Arenado singled in a run .

Freddie Freeman’s RBI double with two outs in the sixth made it 2-1 and chased Bettis.

Braves: 3B Johan Camargo (right oblique strain), who went 0 for 4 Friday while playing shortstop for Class A Florida, will move his rehab to Triple-A Gwinnett after DHing Saturday. “He feels good, health is not an issue,” Snitker said. “It’s just about wanting to see some pitches.”

Rockies OF Charlie Blackmon battled through a stiffening back and was replaced by defensive sub Mike Tauchman to start the 10th.

ESPN has not announced terms of the deal.

“Tonight was obviously a debacle,” Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. “We were stuck in mud from the beginning of that game.”

Portis scored 13 points in the first quarter to help erase an early 16-7 Nets lead.

In the second quarter, baskets by Rondae Hollis-Jefferson bookended a 14-1 run for the Nets which opened a 61-47 lead with 1:11 left until halftime.

Crabbe knocked down four of the Nets’ nine 3-pointers in the third as Brooklyn pushed the lead past 20 points, cruising the rest of the way.

“It’s pretty tough, man,” Portis said of defending Brooklyn. “It’s like playing the Rockets. They shoot a lot of 3s. They shoot a lot of contested shots. That’s what their coach preaches.”

Even though the NFL schedule hasn’t been released, the Vikings and Eagles will face off as the first game of the season, according to Howard Eskin of SportsRadio 94WIP.

Brian Elliott made 17 saves in his second game in goal after returning in Thursday’s 4-3 win over Carolina following a 25-game absence because of core muscle surgery on Feb. 13.

Elliott was shaky in the win over the Hurricanes, allowing a pair of soft goals while making 19 saves. He didn’t have much action against the Rangers.

Provorov got the Flyers on the board 6 1/2 minutes into the game when he scored on a 6-on-5 advantage as a result of a delayed penalty. Sean Couturier sent the puck toward the crease from the left of the goal, and the puck caromed off Provorov’s right shoulder and past Lundqvist. The goal stood after an officials’ review.

D Brady Skjei is the only Rangers player to appear in every game this season. Four Flyers: Couturier, Provorov, Giroux and Jakub Voracek, accomplished the feat for Philadelphia. … Eric Lindros was the previous Flyers player to reach 100 points, with 115 in the 1995-96 season. Giroux’s other hat trick came in Game 2 of the first round of the 2012 playoffs against the Penguins. … LW Matt Beleskey, acquired in the trade that sent Rick Nash to the Bruins on Feb. 25, made his Rangers debut and C Steven Fogarty made his NHL debut for New York.

But the Patriots have a knack for turning journeyman receivers into stars, so this is a good career move for Patterson. It’s also a good move for the Pats, who’ve learned the last couple of seasons that you can never have too many quality receivers after Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski faced injuries.

“That’s been a pretty good combo for us,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “I’d rather win the game a little earlier, but there’s some comfort when Bregman is up to bat and Fisher is on second.”

Gerrit Cole struck out 11 in seven sharp innings for Houston, giving up five hits and walking none. Since being acquired by the champion Astros, he has given up one run in 14 innings and fanned 22, a franchise record for the most strikeouts through the first two starts.

Browns wide receiver Corey Coleman was accused Tuesday in court testimony of leading a group that beat a personal trainer unconscious during a confrontation in a stairwell, Cleveland.com reported.

The victim, Adam Sapp, testified in Cleveland during the trial of Coleman’s brother, Jonathan, that he now remembers Corey Coleman at the front of the group that ambushed him on Dec. 31, 2016.

Sapp said he didn’t remember whether the Browns star hit him but that he remembers that Corey Coleman was at the front of a group that followed him into the stairwell of a parking garage connected to an apartment building.

“It’s a fast, hard-nosed game,” he said. “The intensity ramps up and the style of play. It’s hard to score. There are a lot of 2-1 games, 3-2 games, and you have to find different ways to score. I’ve always prided myself on being able to score in different ways and I think the physical element as well. That’s a big part of the playoffs. Guys who have 20 hits all year the next thing you know they have 20 hits in two games. It’s definitely a different animal, and I’m looking forward to experiencing it.”

DeBoer said he expects all his players to be available for Game 1 on Thursday with the exception of Thornton, who has been out since Jan. 23.

It’s not clear whether this is a run-of-the-mill training session for Donald. If it is, then it helps explain how he has been able to dominate offensive lines over the years and record 11 sacks and five forced fumbles last season.

If this is a new regimen — and if Donald is only getting better from it — then the rest of the league should be taking note and tripling its offseason efforts.

Obviously this could all just be for show and the knives don’t do anything, but notice this: Donald isn’t the one wearing protective padding; the knife-handler is, too.

Little went right in a season Buffalo opened 1-5-2 and closed 2-9, extending the franchise’s longest playoff drought to a seventh straight year.

Buffalo matched a franchise low for home wins by going 11-25-5, including a 3-2 overtime loss to the Rangers in the Winter Classic at New York City. The Sabres finished last in the NHL with 199 goals scored, 91 goals at home and in being outscored by 81 goals.

The Washington Redskins have agreed to trade troubled Su’a Cravens to the Denver Broncos in a five-pick deal that will see the two teams swap draft selections in the fourth and fifth rounds, with the Broncos also sending another fifth-round pick to Washington to complete the deal, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports, citing a source. The Broncos will receive the 113th and 149th overall picks while the Redskins will get the 109th, 142nd, and 163rd overall selections in return, Schefter reports. Cravens tweeted his response to the deal on Tuesday.
The Broncos have been rumored to be pursuing Cravens since February.

The 22-year-old safety was a Redskins second-round pick in 2016, but Cravens sat out the entire 2017 season after an injury-plagued rookie campaign. Aside from a biceps injury and going under the knife for knee surgery, Cravens said he feared he suffered permanent damage to his eyesight due to a concussion. He threatened to retire ahead of the 2017 season and Washington placed him on its exempt list. He was reinstated by the NFL in February. The Broncos continue to retool their secondary. The No Fly Zone that once featured Aqib Talib and T.J. Ward will move forward with Cravens joining Chris Harris Jr., Bradley Roby, Darian Stewart, and Justin Simmons.

Steelers:It’s gut check time in Pittsburgh. After falling short of the rematch with the Patriots that many presumed was predestined, the Steelers have to address the self-destructive tendencies that have haunted them in key stretches. Still, few teams can keep up with them when they’re at their best.

Saints:New Orleans looked ready for this level — and beyond — before Stefon Diggs dashed the hopes of Drew Brees and Co. with his last-second touchdown in the divisional round. With an ascending roster powered by young talent, it’s difficult to find many holes here.

Vikings:Kirk Cousins very well may not be the missing ingredient for a title run. But with a championship-ready defense and plenty of weapons around him, the prized quarterback shouldn’thave to play hero to return Minnesota to this stage.

It’s part of the evaluation process. It might not be the end all. Some might have major issues with the questions posed in the Wonderlic test at the annual NFL Scouting Combine. That’s fine. Teams still use the test as a way to evaluate potential draft picks.

In what has been a continual theme recently, scores for this year’s Wonderlic testing have been leaked. Here’s a look at the 2018 NFL Draft’s top quarterback prospects and how they graded out.

His story does not get old, and his personality does not get old either. After he went through all his workouts and all his interviews, Griffin met with two young fans with 3-D printed arms. One was named Wyatt and one was named Annika. They both got their limbs from a non-profit run by engineers at UCF. The kids were both in awe and familiar, gawking and nodding knowingly. It’s easy to imagine their joy replicated by hundreds or even thousands of fans in some NFL city by year’s end. It’s going to happen, no matter what draft round, no matter what rank on the roster. That is the Shaquem Griffin effect.

The 27-year-old spent the first four seasons of his career with the Jets, who took him in the second round of the 2013 draft. Smith joined the Giants on a one-year contract last spring and started one game in 2017, going 21 of 36 for 212 yards and a touchdown in a Week 13 loss to the Oakland Raiders. In 35 career games (31 starts), Smith has 6,174 passing yards, 29 touchdowns, 36 interceptions and a QB rating of 72.9.

He owns a 12-19 record as a starter. He is not expected to return to the Giants, who have 2017 third-round pick Davis Webb behind starter Eli Manning, along with the No. 2 pick in next month’s draft. The Chargers have an opening behind Philip Rivers, with veteran Kellen Clemens unsigned as a free agent. Clemens, 34, spent 2017 on a one-year, $1 million deal with the Chargers. The Bolts also have 2016 fourth-round pick Cardale Jones, who was acquired from the Buffalo Bills for a conditional draft pick last July. The Seahawks are looking for a signal-caller behind Russell Wilson after releasing former backup Trevone Boykin on Tuesday following reports of Boykin’s involvement in an alleged March 20 domestic-violence incident.

John Elway signed a bridge quarterback this offseason, adding Case Keenum on a two-year deal. That won’t stop the Denver Broncos from possibly using the No. 5 overall pick on a quarterback.

The general manager said on The Adam Schefter Podcast Show this week he’s keeping his options open as the team ramps up its draft preparation.

That’ll be wide open, Elway said, via ESPN’s Jeff Legwold. … I’m betting we won’t know what direction we’re going to go until probably the day of [the first round] or the day before.

Jordan danced around possibilities, discussing edge rushers, Penn State tight end Mike Gesicki and avoiding crowding New Orleans’ talented backfield before turning to the quarterback position.

If you’re looking for an heir apparent, maybe give him the Aaron Rodgers treatment. Let him learn from the best for a couple years and then send him on. But I’m not putting here nor there, I’m just simply saying, Jordan said before immediately mouthing Lamar Jackson.

No, I’m saying Sheldon Rankins is from Louisville, Jordan said in a playful cover-up attempt.

We know months worth of prognostication become moot within the first couple hours of the NFL draft, but should Jackson end up in New Orleans, add football fortune teller to Jordan’s list of accolades — even if Suh didn’t want to join him.

I asked him in Orlando if he’d give up a pinky toe if it meant a guaranteed Super Bowl victory in the next seven years. He did not hesitate in his answer. ‘Right now,’ NFL Media’s Dan Hanzus noted.

Well, the pinky toe is probably the least important of all the digits down there. It’s not quite on par with Hall of Fame safety Ronnie Lott giving up one of his fingers to play in a game. Even then, we’re openly wondering whether Reid’s family would be okay with this exchange.

All or Nothing has proved to be sturdier than initially expected from a storytelling standpoint. To put it another way, the show doesn’t live or die by the success of the team being studied. NFL Films knows how to work magic, whether it’s documenting a 2015 Cardinals team that came within one victory of the Super Bowl or a dreadful 2016 Rams team that lost constantly and eventually fired the head coach. (I can still see Jeff Fisher holding his dog and waving as the team busses departed for another slaughter in Seattle. I’m not sure he’s been seen since.)